Joe treks 132km on 45th birthday to save lives

A group of 10 trekkers who set off from Kampala on Monday, heading to Bushenyi, Western Uganda under the Joe Walker campaign had by Thursday evening covered 132 km out of the targeted 320kms.
The Joe Walker campaign under the theme “Safe Roads, Save Lives”, is aimed at raising awareness about road safety.
Last night, the group led by Mr Joseph Beyanga, the head of radio Nation Media Group Uganda(NMG-U) slept in Masaka City. They resumed the journey today as they trek to Kyazanga Town along Masaka –Mbarara high way in Lwengo District where they plan to spend the night.

 Mr Beyanga, the brain behind the campaign says since they started the trek on Monday, they have made four stopovers in the towns of Buwama, Mpigi, Lukaya, and Masaka talking to pedestrians and motorists on how they can safely use the road and reduce road carnage.
According to Beyanga, who this reporter found washing his walking attire at Lakewood Inn in Nyendo , a Masaka City suburb  Thursday evening, Lukaya -Masaka –Lukaya trek was shortest ever since they started the campaign.
Along the trek, Beyanga says they have realised that speeding motorists are mostly government vehicle drivers and buses.

“Today is my 45th birthday and I decided to celebrate while advocating for road safety since road carnage is among 10 top killers in Uganda, and five percent of national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is committed to this killer every year. I am advocating for behavioral change among all road users,” he says.  
Mr Beyanga notes that 71 percent of accidents are caused by careless and reckless driving. He urged all Ugandans to always consider safety and avert unnecessary road deaths.

Road crashes had reduced between March 2020 and July 2021 when government declared a virus-induced lockdown and fewer vehicles mainly cargo trucks and essential workers were allowed on the roads. However, road carnage picked up as soon as restrictions on movement were lifted.

Police statistics indicated that a total of 383 accidents occurred from 24th to 30th January 2022, and out of these, 57 accidents were fatal, 213 were serious and 113 were minor.
There were 348 accident victims during this period and out of these, 65 people died while 283 others sustained injuries.

 The overall annual cost of road crashes is currently estimated at approximately Shs4.4 trillion, representing five percent of Uganda’s gross domestic product, which is a huge cost for a developing country like Uganda.
The trek is sponsored by Nation Media Group- Uganda, Coca-Cola, Vivo Energy. Tugende, Uganda National Roads Authority (Unra), Plascon and Nicole Foundation, and a host of individuals.